Sunday, April 30, 2006

Imposing Sanctions on Iran Illegal — Russian Diplomat

Imposing Sanctions on Iran Illegal — Russian DiplomatRussian diplomat Ruslan Khazbulatov says there was no legal basis for the imposition of sanctions on Iran by the UN Security Council and that Iran’s nuclear activities were being conducted within the framework of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). He said US accusations against Iran were part of its war-mongering policies in the region.

"On the report of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei to the UN Security Council, he was of the view that the Security Council has “only the authority to ask Iran to cooperate with the IAEA and continue negotiations.” The Islamic Republic of Iran is an active member of both the IAEA and the UN, he said, and stressed that Tehran had repeatedly declared it had no intention of producing nuclear weapons.

Since Iran has not violated its obligations under the Non- Proliferation Treaty (NPT), there is no ground for the imposition of sanctions on the country, the Russian diplomat stressed, and added that coercive measures will only damage the interests of countries, including the West and even the U.S."